From Rivalry to Reconciliation … Sunni-Alawite Reunion Sees Light Monday
High-level Sunni and Alawite leaders will meet later Monday to sign a reconciliation plan for Tripoli to curb sectarian fighting in a move that could pave the way for further reunions between the country”s feuding factions.
The reconciliation meeting at the house of the Mufti of Tripoli and North Lebanon Sheikh Malek Shaar is expected to take place at 9:30 pm under the auspices of Prime Minister Fouad Saniora.
The participants at the reconciliation meeting will sign what is to be called the "Tripoli Document" which offers, in addition to safeguarding civil peace, handing over the city”s security to the Lebanese army.
The document also calls for eliminating all armed presence in the north, allowing displaced people to return to their homes according to a set timetable and paying compensation for residents whose houses have been damaged during the fighting.
The plan also calls for providing temporary homes for people who are unable to return to their damaged houses.
The daily An Nahar on Monday said the various sides have approved the text of the agreement.
Mustaqbal Movement leader Saad Hariri has launched the initiative which aims at ending the fighting in Tripoli.
Tripoli has been the scene of a spate of deadly clashes since May between Sunnis and rivals from the Alawite community who support Hizbullah.
In June and July, 23 people were killed in battles between the two sides. There has been tension between the two communities ever since Lebanon”s 1975-1990 civil war.
Hariri on Sunday, the second day of his tour to the north, met with former Premier Omar Karami, a longtime friend of his father, Rafik Hariri, assassinated by a massive car bomb in February 2005.
Meanwhile, Speaker Nabih Berri telephoned Hariri to "congratulate" him on his reconciliation efforts.
Hariri has met with Alawite leader Ali Eid who heads the Arab Democratic Party.
News reports said the Tripoli Document will be discussed during a cabinet session on Tuesday.
The cabinet is also expected to look into the proposal of Finance Minister Mohammad Shatah to raise the minimum wage to LL 500,000.
Hariri”s initiative could pave the way for further reconciliations in light of Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah”s announcement that he was open to Mustaqbal movement.
"We are open to Mustaqbal movement, Dar al-Fatwa and all Sunnis and if a meeting with MP Saad Hariri is not possible for security reasons, nothing prevents holding meetings between the parties” officials," Nasrallah told an Iftar dinner on Sunday.